'SNL 40' Dominates Sunday's TV Ratings Says Nielsen

Sunday's airing of the Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special drew huge television viewership numbers, garnering a 14.2 household rating on NBC versus a 5.5 rating for the All-Star Game on TNT and TBS, according to the 56 markets monitored by Nielsen. The rating for the SNL show translated into 23.1 million viewers from 8-11:30 p.m. ET time slot, making it as NBC's most watched prime-time entertainment telecast in terms of total viewers since May 13, 2004, when the medical drama series ER had registered 23.9 million viewers.

The Saturday Night Live 40th Anniversary Special brought back some of the biggest names in the show's history. The star-studded three-and-a-half-hour event has everything from amazing live performances and hilarious skits to nostalgic blasts from the past from the now legendary former cast members and guests of the long-running TV show. And fittingly enough, it kicked off with Jimmy Fallon and Justin Timberlake's opening song-and-dance number which channeled years of famous catchphrases and characters in the SNL's history like The Coneheads, the 'Dick in a Box,' The Blues Brothers, Garth and Wayne, and many more.

During one of the segments, the SNL showed clips from the audition tapes of some of the show's biggest breakout stars. In the montage, the then young Amy Poehler, Gilda Radner, and Jimmy Fallon were shown trying out for what turned out to be the gig of a lifetime. Also shown were other stars who auditioned for the show but never made the cut, including Jim Carrey, Stephen Colbert, Zach Galifanakis, and Kevin Hart.

The most sentimental parts of the show included Eddie Murphy's stepping onto the stage, his first time since 32 years ago, and telling the crowd, "Isn't this an incredible night? This show is a big part of who I am and my life." Another was the tribute they paid Tracy Morgan who still has to recover from his serious car accident injuries. In that segment, Tina Fey said to the audience: "I wish my friend Tracy Morgan was here tonight. I know he was hoping he would be well enough to be here too." Then turning to the camera, she addressed Tracy, "See you at the 41^st."

Of course, music also played a big part of SNL's 40th anniversary festivities with live performances by Paul McCartney, Kanye West, Paul Simon, and Miley Cyrus who used the occasion to show everyone that she is really a great singer. But since Kanye West was there, the SNL just has to prank him for his Grammy Awards antics. During the 'Wayne's World' sketch, the characters first joked that Kanye was not to try to come on stage again and the camera shot to West who was trying to stand up in the audience and being forcibly seated by security. Then they took one more dig at him by saying Beck was better than Beyonce, followed by yelling at the Kanye to remain in his seat.